Our fathers understood not thy wonders in Egypt; they
remembered not the multitude of thy mercies; but provoked him at the sea, even
at the Red sea. (Psa 106:7)
Twice in the Gospel of Matthew Jesus replied the religious
community that the wicket and adulterous generation look for the outward for
confirmation of spirituality (Matt 12:39, 16:4). This generation still exists today.
By and large many still look for external gratifications
and conclude that they are of God. Manifestations of outward signs don’t guarantee
entrance into the Promise Land of His Kingdom as with the Israelites who saw
and experienced great wonders after having been redeemed from Egypt. Fire from
heaven never converted Ahab neither will the same bring true conversion today.
Jesus’ answer was in the cross He carried and
prescribed the same to those who desired to follow Him. Physical death is too
late for transformation from glory to glory (2 Cor 3:18), something of us
requiring death that concerns our Lord. This death brings about a lasting transformation
experience where God penetrates deep into the recesses of our being into the
inner sanctum and breaths His uncreated life into us. The hindrance of the
external life has to be dealt with in order that the Holy Spirit can render us
spirituality that connects and receives freely from God. The message of the
cross is only morbid to those who want to triumph in the exterior. Without death, there is no resurrection.
The human will stands as a fortified fortress that feeds on
senses prevents the lasting work of the Holy Spirit. To know the complete will
of God, our will has to die. In order to take up the cross and follow our Lord,
preceding that requires us facing our own Gethsemane. Depth of the will is an
experience, not an idea and there the process of dying daily (1 Cor 15:31). Our
will rages war against the will of God. When we are hungry, we will to eat. If
we are thirsty, we will to drink. If we want to gratify our flesh, we will to
do so. If we have been hurt, we will not to turn the other cheek. We can’t
live the transcendent life of Christ in this world. Our own will denies the
complete subjection to the spirit of God. If we deny the Spirit, we deny the
manifestation of Christ life in us.
As with the Israelites who left Egypt, we should be careful
not live presumptuously as many of them did and looking, complaining to be
fulfilled externally, but inwardly void of the power of God to transform to
know the good, and acceptable and perfect, will of God (Rom 12:2). The Spirit’s
working begins in us and demonstrated in the exterior, not conversely.
No comments:
Post a Comment